"Now, is 'Creeps' a verb or a noun in this?"
"I think it's a French pancake."
"I think it's a French pancake."
"...But it starts in Russia."
Films watched: The Phantom Creeps (Film Serial) Chapter 2 and Rocket Attack U.S.A.
This is the first MST3K episode to include a stinger at the end of the episode.
The episode is available in the Gizmoplex here
.
The Segments:
Prologue- Joel gives Tom a "haircut" by sanding the sides of his head down, making it perfectly cylindrical so he looks "kind of like that guy from House Party." He also goes a little bonkers selling him additional "hair"-care products.
Segment 1/Invention Exchange
- Gypsy ate Joel's original invention (the Mexican Jumping Bean-Bag Chair), so he produces an adding machine that prints out candy strips to make taxes fun. The Mads fill a foosball table with good ol' H2O to create indoor water polo.
Segment 2
- In preparation for the film's political commentary, Joel gives the 'Bots a lesson about the Cold War, starting with the Charlie McCarthy hearings. His artist renderings feature many beloved puppets and animation stars of The '50s as informants.
Segment 3
- Joel hosts a parody quiz game called Civil Defense Quiz Bowl, where the contestants wrap themselves in tinfoil and answer questions relating to World War III. The final round, "Fallout Elimination", is interrupted by Movie Sign.
Segment 4
- Just as the US and the Soviet Union had their Space Race, so too did the Soviets send a man and his two robot pals into space. In this case, cosmonaut Sari Andropoli and two inoperable 'bots. While Sari is relatively friendly, his sense of humor is lacking.
Segment 5
- The crew just can't stop speaking their grievances with the film over each other, but after a deep breath, they go on a long tirade. The letter they read, including a photo of a stuffed bunny, doesn't improve their mood. The Mads ignore their tirade and go see Madame Sousatzka instead.
The Mystery Science Theater 3000 presentation of The Phantom Creeps (Chapter 2: Death Stalks the Highway) has examples of:
- Artistic License – Medicine: During the serial, when finding Mrs. Zorka unconscious at a crash site:Crow: Yeah, try moving her spine around as much as possible!
(Servo makes Sickening "Crunch!" noises) - Call-Back: Lugosi's delivery of "How foor-tune-it! Dees vill simpli-fy eh-very-tink!" from Chapter 1 keeps being invoked (and will return in future unrelated episodes).
- Opening Scroll: During the opening scroll, Joel quips, "You sure Lucas was the first to do this?"
- Reports of My Death Were Greatly Exaggerated: Servo used the “Rumors” variant of the quote during the installment.
- Shout-Out: After the cops shoot one of the mechanical spiders:Joel: Oh, be proud: you shot a spider. Thank you, John Goodman.
The Mystery Science Theater 3000 presentation of Rocket Attack U.S.A. includes examples of:
- Anything but That!: Servo and Crow's reaction to Davey and Goliath being friendly witnesses for the HUAC.
- Big Applesauce: Invoked verbatim by Crow, who says the Russians are going to turn the Big Apple into applesauce.
- Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: The blind man walking a few seconds, then saying in monotone "Help me." According to the Episode Guide, Best Brains became so obsessed with that bizarre little moment it became the first Stinger.Crow: ...What?!
- There's also the couple with Noo Yawk Brooklyn accents, one played by Art Metrano, arguing about a tie "wit nood dames onit!"
- Big Stupid Doo Doo Head:Crow: Go away, you poopie ca-ca-head Russians!
-
Broken Aesop:Joel: And then there's the glorious ending where the entire center of New York City explodes — except for the perimeters — and all we learn is that we're supposed to live in the suburbs, not in the city! - Continuity Nod: Joel's Mexican Jumping Bean Bag Chair, of all things, returns in Season 11's The Loves of Hercules. (New Mad Kinga, having been called out on basing her inventions on Jonah and company's riffs, apparently resorted to mining her father's old experiments. No one catches her this time.)
- Curse Cut Short: At the end of Civil Defense Quiz Bowl:Joel: What is the most practical thing you can do in the event of a full-scale thermonuclear war?Crow: Uhhh... Put your head between your legs and kiss your—Joel: Movie sign!!'
- Dirty Commies: One segment deals with puppets of The '50s dealing with HUAC, with some of them getting The Hollywood Blacklist.
- The End... Or Is It?: The film's attempted use of this trope is mocked mercilessly with but four words.Narrator: We cannot let this be... The End!
Servo, Joel, Crow: Oh YES we can! - Expository Hairstyle Change: Tom Servo gets a "haircut" resulting in his dome being replaced with a clear cylinder. The new look only lasts for two episodes.
- According to Best Brains, it was to reduce the amount of space taken up by Servo in the theater. They decided they liked "Classic" Servo better. Oddly, even during this episode, Servo is initially pleased with his "haircut" when Joel says he looks like Christopher Reid from House Party, but sours later, scoffing at Joel's insistence he looks like that member of Kid 'N' Play.
- Five-Second Foreshadowing: Just before the blind man says “Help me!”, Joel stands up and lunges with his arms forward, as if he was prompting him.
- Genius Bonus: John Wayne did indeed get cancer from being on the radioactive on-location set for The Conqueror, which had been a nuclear bomb testing site.
- Just Ignore It: Crow, as one of a pair of ladies from before the bombs drop: "Darn ol' apocalypse. I just ignore them."
- Let Me Get This Straight...:Crow: Cut to New York, where Art Metrano and Harry Connick eat pizza and buy ties for their stupid girlfriends, and Harry Truman gets off a plane by the sewage dump and then a blind guy goes by and says "Help me." WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE?
- Mythology Gag: Sari is wearing Joel's jumpsuit from the KTMA season.
- Not Even Bothering with the Accent: One of many things J&TB are annoyed about at the end is that they didn't even realize the Fake Brit spy was even supposed to be a Brit at all.
- Retroactive Recognition: In-Universe, as Joel and the bots recognize Art Metrano, and hum the theme from his stand-up comedy act.
- Running Gag:
- Doing the eerie One-Woman Wail from 2001: A Space Odyssey whenever a "monolithic" piece of blast barrier at the Soviet missile base is onscreen.
- Trying to place orders at the cafe in Moscow while the floor show is going on.
- Parodying the narrator, especially during long scenes with nothing but Russian dialogue. This culminates in the scene where the Soviet leaders order an attack on New York being narrated as them making Prank Calls."Russian": Heh-heh. Ten pound balls.
- Shout-Out: There are three references to Hart to Hart ("That's my boss!") during the episode.
- Spoof Aesop: When complaining to the Mads about the movie at the end of the episode, Joel's final complaint is that, with the movie ending with New York getting blown up, the overall "message" is that "we're supposed to live in the suburbs, not in the city".
- Waxing Lyrical: Two examples.
- When the hero is waiting in a ruined building:
- A Soviet officer paces in his office.
- Who Shot JFK?:Joel: Which early 60s CIA covert operation was considered the greatest failure of the decade? (Crow buzzes) Crow!
Crow: The Kennedy assassination?
Joel: No, I'm afraid that one was a success.
